I'm really not doing business

Chapter 420: Be soft with the unreasonable and be aggressive with the reasonable.

After Zhu Zaiyu presented the first and second pieces of auspiciousness, Zhu Yijun looked at the third piece of auspiciousness. Zhu Zaiyu pulled away the red silk and said, "Additional and subtractive machine."

A wooden box appeared in front of Zhu Yijun. There were nine wheels on this wooden box from left to right. The wheels were engraved with ten numbers from 0 to 9. Zhu Yijun understood this through Zhu Zaiyu's explanation. To use the adding and subtracting machine, you only need to turn the wheel to perform nine-digit addition and subtraction operations. If the addition is greater than ten, it will automatically carry. When calculations are no longer needed, just press the button next to it to reset.

Zhu Zaiyu opened the wooden box and showed the extremely complex gear structure inside. The gears were coated with a layer of fish oil, which was obviously used to prevent rust and lubrication. The gears were made with extremely precision. Zhu Yijun was amazed after reading it.

The Ming Dynasty had an extremely strong demand for computing power. The Royal Academy of Geosciences had to make precise maps and calculate the trigonometric data many times. The Ministry of Household Affairs and the eunuchs of the Ming Dynasty had to carry out a two-month survey every November. Accounting, this kind of accounting is extremely cumbersome. Major shipping companies have to conduct extensive statistics on import and export trade. These strong demands for computing power eventually gave birth to the calculation of Zhu Zaiyu's adding and subtracting machine.

"Compared with an abacus, accounts that required eight people to calculate in the past can be completed by only one person, and during the calculation process, there is no need to think and leave it to the machine to run." Zhu Zaiyu explained this thing simply The origin of.

The adding and subtracting machine can be regarded as a fully mechanized abacus. There is no need for any thinking in the whole process, only numbers need to be entered.

"This thing is very good." Zhu Yijun carefully studied the adding and subtracting machine, closed the cover, and tried to use it several times. This machine can reduce the probability of errors.

Zhu Yijun rewarded Zhu Zaiyu and the Imperial Palace, especially the steam engine with the power of three horses, which was highly praised by the emperor. Zhu Yijun told Zhu Zaiyu not to worry about the rationing of steam engines, and to just research with peace of mind.

Zhu Zaiyu thanked En and left. Zhu Yili left happily after getting two models and an adding and subtracting machine.

In the early morning of October, the late autumn wind swept through the streets of Ming Dynasty with a bone-chilling chill, and the courtiers began to enter the palace from the left gate.

At this time, in the side hall of Wenhua Palace, all the courtiers were waiting to go to court. On weekdays, when waiting to go to court, all the courtiers would remain silent and close their eyes to rest. But today is different from usual. The difference is that the Ming Emperor was late.

Zhang Juzheng looked at Wan Shihe, Wang Guoguang and Ma Ziqiang, and said seriously: "I don't think there is anything wrong. According to the stamp I posted, the house should be ransacked, and your majesty only removed the honorary title." Forget it, the debts accumulated in Jiangnan are not one to five years, not ten to fifty years, but more than a hundred years."

"Your Majesty said to postpone it for an hour, and your Majesty will be here shortly." Feng Bao shook his head and said.

The Ming Dynasty's court discussions were jointly discussed by nine ministers. These nine ministers were the six ministers, the General Constitution of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, the minister of Dali Temple, and the general affairs envoy. As time passed, the functions of the general affairs department gradually belonged to the cabinet, and the general affairs envoy became the cabinet assistant. minister.

The chief minister is not the head of the hundred officials. Only Zhang Juzheng, through the power and responsibilities of the Taifu, overstepped or shared part of the imperial power and became the actual head of the hundred officials.

Zhang Juzheng looked at Ma Ziqiang and said: "The thirteen thousand people in Su, Song, Chang, and Ying Prefectures must be completed before the New Year this year without delay. These evil gentry are always like this, with unreasonable people." To be submissive and to be rude to those who are reasonable, the court must be reasonable, but when it is time to be unreasonable, it must also be unreasonable."

"Phew." Everyone exhaled. It was not something bad that happened, but something happy.

Starting from the first year of Wanli, martial arts began to be promoted. The generals in charge of the Beijing camp and the generals with military honors began to come to the Wenhua Palace to discuss the matter. This ancestor became a law and came back.

"I know that all of us, the court officials in the capital, the six ministries, the officials in the department, and even the various local yamen, all have relatives and friends in Nanya. But if the tax revenue cannot be raised, the court will no longer be a court. Everything requires money. Food, why are you a Ming Gong and he a foreign official? You can weigh the public and private matters yourself." Zhang Juzheng's tone was already a bit stern, even a bit admonishing.

Faced with the tax collection agency, the Zheshe households came up with a way. The evil gentry and corrupt officials colluded together to use goods with lower value in the south of the Yangtze River, such as porcelain, cotton cloth, etc., which were not easy to sell, to offset the payment. Taxes, these physical objects are inconvenient to handle and difficult to calculate the value, causing the tax inspectorate to have a headache.

If compared with the Tang Dynasty, the Three Provinces and Six Ministries are missing two provinces, Zhongshu Province and Menxia Province. In other words, the top-level political system design of the Ming Dynasty lacks a substantial prime minister who is the head of a hundred officials.

Even if Zhang Juzheng is so powerful, he is still not the prime minister, but the Yuanfu Taifu, because the prime minister can establish his own government office, set up his own imperial flag, recruit his own staff, freely appoint and remove subordinate officials, and even It is the formulation of partial laws and policies.

After Zhang Juzheng came to power in the sixth year of Longqing, the main content of the court discussion was the appointment and dismissal of the six ministers, left and right ministers, and governors. Matters that each ministry could not decide on their own were brought to the Wenhua Hall for discussion. This was the court discussion.

Wan Shihe was watching his nose and heart while he was dozing. He suddenly opened his eyes and said, "Recently, the scholar-bureaucrats have said that Your Majesty is too ruthless. Yesterday I published a volume of Overseas Chinese Chronicles. His Majesty's approval made me Shocked and worried."

Tan Lun said with considerable approval: "The left and right are just a group of cheap Confucians who don't even want to see a contradiction. They will be dismissed as soon as they are dismissed. It is not a big deal. It is hard to find three-legged toads in the Ming Dynasty, and the streets are full of two-legged scholars." It’s all, since you want to be an official, if you see the contradiction and say these three words, you will get sick. Keeping them will not be beneficial to the country, and then send them to Java to civilize the natives.”

"His Majesty's tax office then goes to the tax court. The tax court's reminders will have to be issued three times before they can collect the debt. Your majesty has given so many opportunities, but they have to find ways to do it. They have lost their sense of obedience and are not loyal to the people. Your Majesty, you are not loyal to the country, and it is just right to confiscate your home. In recent years, the country has become more peaceful, and your Majesty has become a little more kind."

After the first year of Wanli, the number of people in the court was expanded, and the additional governors of the Five Army Governor's Palace were added. This was an ancestral law. During the Hongwu, Yongle, and Xuande years, the chief governors of the Five Army Governor's Palace were all important. Deeply involved in political affairs, the first generation of British Duke Zhang Fu, as a minister of Tuogu, deeply participated in state decision-making in the early years of orthodoxy.

"Being ruthless is better than being ignorant of the world." Tan Lun looked at Wan Shihe. He didn't think there was anything wrong in what His Majesty had done over the years.

There was a vague worry among the courtiers. Words such as assassination of the palace maid, assassination of the king, and burning of the palace echoed in the minds of the courtiers. This was something that actually happened in the Ming Dynasty. Your Majesty even went to Xiyuan. They don't even live anymore, they moved to Jiangwutang and Ligong. What else is wrong?

Similarly, the courtiers were also vaguely worried. His Majesty was already very ruthless. If something big happened again, he might turn into a truly ruthless monster. Whether this would be a blessing or a curse for the Ming Dynasty was yet to be determined.

However, with the general trend of promoting civil and military affairs, Zhang Fu and Yang Shiqi gradually lost in the political struggle. In the fifth year of Zhengtong, several Wu Xun represented by Zhang Fu no longer went to court as a sign, announcing that Wu Xun would no longer participate in state affairs. .

"I don't know, it shouldn't be anything big." Zhang Juzheng didn't receive any news.

The Xindu Yang family and their lackeys and other criminals have not yet beheaded in public. After this investigation, at least hundreds more heads fell to the ground. You, Zhang Juzheng, actually said, Your Majesty has a tender heart?

"Yes." Ma Ziqiang was helpless. He did have relatives and friends in Nanya, but he felt that depriving more than 10,000 people of their honors at once was a bit too much. If the chickens were killed to scare the monkeys, the monkeys would also be killed.

An heir was born in the palace. For such a big event, the emperor actually came to court. Did your education, Zhang Juzheng, go a little too hard?

"That makes sense." Wang Chonggu also expressed his thoughts and agreed with Tan Lun's remarks.

All the ministers were stunned for a moment, and then they all looked at Zhang Juzheng. Zhang Juzheng said slightly stiffly: "I'm sorry to bother you, I will obey the order."

Wan Shihe did not even explain what His Majesty approved, which made him so worried.

Zhang Juzheng is not a prime minister, and his Quan Chu Guild Hall is not a government office. His subordinates cannot go wherever Zhang Juzheng wants. If he makes a mistake, the Quan Chu Guild Hall cannot make its own decision.

"Yesterday, His Majesty reported to the Ministry of Household Affairs and said, "Any gentry who owes money, no matter how big or small, will submit a petition to be dismissed from the job. If the petition is dismissed, it will not be recorded for three generations."

"Then the court meeting is going to be waived today?" Zhang Juzheng did not sit down and was about to leave. There was a big event in the palace, so the court meeting can be postponed for a while. The big case of Sichuan Zhutou has just been completed, and even Wang Qian was On the way back, there was no major incident that disturbed the Holy One.

Zhang Juzheng led his ministers to pay their respects to the palace and said in unison: "I congratulate the Ming Dynasty and congratulate Your Majesty!"

"Yuanfu, what happened?" Wang Chonggu opened his eyes and felt that His Majesty was too late today. It had already been a quarter of an hour and His Majesty's guard of honor had not arrived yet.

Wang Chonggu asked Zhang Juzheng by name, because only Zhang Juzheng could flirt with the palace under the imperial authority. The courtiers were very clear about the dealings between Xu Jue and You Qi, and only Zhang Juzheng could know exactly what happened in the palace. information.

There were no chiefs above the nine ministers. This actually formed a multi-headed yamen with ministers but no officials, and the decision-making power was completely concentrated in the hands of the emperor.

Wang Guoguang looked at Tan Lun, sighed and said: "Since the tax inspection by the Tax Inspection Institute, Jiangnan still has arrears of money and grain taxes. It is different from the past. This time it is not a deceitful payment, but in kind instead of money. Everyone knows that, As for the physical objects, there are many articles. The evil gentry recruited corrupt officials and passed them off as good ones. It seems that they have been handed over, but in fact there are still deficiencies. However, there are many types of physical objects, which are difficult to count and it is difficult for the tax inspectorate to handle the taxes."

Since the first year of Wanli, His Majesty has been late once, left early 0 times, and failed to attend court meetings 0 times.

Wan Shihe's meaning is very clear. Based on some of his own experiences, His Majesty is indeed too ruthless.

History is always a victory of ruthlessness over stupidity.

The Ministry of Household Affairs told His Majesty about this, and Your Majesty came up with a memorial and cancellation law. As long as the gentry and officials participated in it, they would be revoked and their titles would be revoked. They would not be allowed to take the exam for three generations. This would directly kill the lives of these prominent families. If they are not included in the three generations, If three generations of people have no fame, how can they still have a noble family?

"In the four prefectures of Suzhou, Songjiang, Changzhou, and Yingtian, more than 13,000 people have been dismissed from their positions." Ma Ziqiang, the Minister of Rites, said.

While the courtiers were speculating, Feng Bao walked in and said with a beaming face: "Congratulations to the Ming Dynasty and congratulations to Your Majesty. This morning, Concubine Zhou De gave birth to a princess. Your Majesty named her Zhu Xuanyu. Everyone, I am congratulated. .”

The Tax Inspection Institute is only responsible for tax collection. On the books, it is true that enough has been paid, but in fact, another amount has been evaded.

As an official, if you can't even distinguish between contradictions, primary contradictions and secondary contradictions, why should you be an official? Go home and plant sweet potatoes.

The discussion before this court meeting seemed to be about His Majesty's proposal to revoke his reputation and rectify taxation. However, in fact, the discussion was about whether His Majesty was too ruthless. The leaders of the three parties were all old men from the previous dynasty. In the late Jiajing years, , the people who were in charge during the Longqing period, no one knew that firewood, rice, oil and salt were expensive. Being poor was really scary. Your Majesty is not afraid of being scolded. The people below are really good at doing things.

There is no need to use ruthless means, evil gentry will only continue to show their lower limit. Under this feudal monarchy with strict etiquette and strict etiquette for thousands of years, the Jin gentry who are not even willing to hand over the imperial grain will really calm down the herdsmen and become the ruling force of the Ming Dynasty. Supplement for weak areas? Obviously not.

Therefore, the result of this discussion before the court is that His Majesty is indeed ruthless, but ruthlessness is better than stupidity.

Zhu Yijun was an hour late. Concubine Zhou De was the eldest in the palace. She gave birth to a child at the age of twenty-six and did not encounter any problems with dystocia. Zhu Yijun went over and took a look. She was six pounds and three ounces. Mother and daughter were safe. Zhu Yijun was in Concubine Zhou De's Huacalyx Building. After staying for more than half an hour, I arrived at the Wenhua Hall and began the daily court discussions.

"The Yang family of Xindu really deserves to die. This Yang Youren hanged himself, which is an advantage for him." Zhu Yijun looked at the file in his hand and exhaled. He had used the greatest malice to speculate on the evil of people, but Yang Youren was still A person like Ren will make his head hurt. Aren’t these despicable scholars and evil gentry afraid of killing themselves?

In the spring of the first year of Wanli, there was a bad harvest in Sichuan, and refugees flocked to Xindu to beg for food. There were only fifty or sixty people in this group of refugees. Yang Youren was only seventeen years old at the time. He had someone throw a bag of grain into the middle of the lake and let these refugees swim to the lake. In the middle of the lake, fish out the grain, and it belongs to them.

Yang Youren just had fun, watched the excitement, and found it amusing.

The refugees are already hungry and cold. How can they have the energy to swim in the lake? But if they didn't swim in the lake, they would starve to death. After repeated decisions, these refugees had no choice but to jump into the lake, drowning seven of them. After landing, fourteen more died of illness, and the remaining people survived.

After hearing this, Yang Ningren, the head of the Yang family in Xindu, was furious. He locked up Yang Youren to study, and then opened a porridge shack, which prevented a civil uprising. If the porridge shacks were not opened, there would be no need for more famine refugees. There would only be two or three people. Thousands of people can tear apart the Yang family completely and eat the Yang family like meat.

This kind of thing happens from time to time. The refugees are so hungry that they have no choice but to attack prefectures and counties.

It was just a string that was stretched, but if Yang Youren played like this, the string would be completely broken.

"When will Wang Yushi return to Beijing?" Zhu Yijun asked about Wang Qian's itinerary. The wealthy young man finished his errands outside and seemed to have no intention of returning to Beijing quickly.

Wang Chonggu bowed his head and said: "Reporting to Your Majesty, Wang Yushi will not return to Beijing until the construction of Dujiangyan Jimin Canal begins. He will not return until about spring and April next year."

"I understand." Zhu Yijun nodded, which was regarded as approval. Wang Qian will wait until the construction of Dujiangyan Jimin Canal starts. The credit of Jimin Canal belongs to him, Wang Qian, and their Jin Party, not Zhang Dang. , the Jin Party does not need to intervene in Sichuan, but the money is spent, and the credit goes to the Jin Party.

The court meeting began. Regarding the Dujiangyan Irrigation Canal project, the Ministry of Works was very concerned about it and even sent the right minister of the Ministry of Works to go there with two doctors.

Under the leadership of Wang Chonggu, the main policy strategy of the Jin Party is to resettle gangsters with work instead of relief.

These eight words have been resolutely implemented since Wang Chonggu entered the cabinet. If it weren't for these eight words, the Jin Party still has ashes, and they are all Zhu Yijun Rouren.

It was already late autumn in October, and the cold wind blew into the capital from outside the Great Wall, and also towards Nanya, Suzhou, Songjiang, Changzhou, and Yingtian. The four prefectures of Suzhou, Songjiang, Changzhou, and Yingtian were wailing. Countless people rushed to tell each other, just because the Ming Emperor issued an imperial edict. More than 10,000 scholars in these four prefectures were dismissed from the imperial examination. From then on, they were just Confucian scholars in robes, no longer scholar-bureaucrats who did not kneel before officials and had great honors.

The cold wind blew through the streets and alleys of Suzhou Prefecture, making them look even more lonely.

Beside the Stone Lion Bridge, the Zhang family's mansion in Suzhou is very lively today, because the method of using physical objects to avoid taxes was thought up and used by the Zhang family. In just one year, it was spread to the other three mansions. Today's method The Zhang family was so lively, it was obvious that all the Jiangnan people gathered together to discuss what to do.

The Zhang family has made a lot of profits from the opening of the sea. They have twelve three-masted plywood ships and one hundred and twenty-four two-masted ocean-going ships. The route from Ningbo Shipping Division to Ryukyu and then to Japan has There are seventeen ironware workshops, twelve bookshops, seven garment workshops, six yarn-making workshops, four luggage workshops, and two woodworking workshops. They have made a lot of money in these years.

The tax is deducted in kind, and their family is tax deducted for ironware. The imperial court needs ironware very much, so it is not an inconvenience.

The six families who came to the Zhang family were all pretty much the same. They were all prominent families who had made a lot of money on the opening of the sea. They were still very dissatisfied with the emperor's Qingzhang, but with the huge profits from the sea opening, they could not help it. He recognized it with a pinch of his nose. Su and Song mansions have become more and more prosperous in recent years.

The head of the Zhang family is named Zhang Gaorui. He was elected in the fourth year of Wanli. In the fifth year of Wanli, he went to Beijing to take the imperial examination and failed. He originally planned to study in the Imperial College to try out the imperial examination in the eighth year of Wanli and gain a bright future. Before entering the Imperial Academy, his father died of illness. The bad news came that he had no choice but to return to his hometown and inherit the family property, which was regarded as abandoning Confucianism and going into business.

Zhang Gaorui was dismissed from his position, and the emperor's harsh treatment aroused widespread dissatisfaction among the literati in Jiangnan.

"The imperial court is so harsh on us. We have paid taxes in full, so why is it so difficult? Isn't it just that we can offset it in kind? Since it is allowed, why do we need to impose such a threat! It is simply unreasonable!" Pan Jingwen, the Dafu Pan clan, slapped the table and said, His face turned red and he said with great anger.

Wu Zhongcheng, a member of the Dongting Merchant Gang, immediately agreed and said, "It's true. The imperial court wanted to clear the father-in-law, so we obeyed. The imperial court wanted to return the land, so we cooperated. The imperial court asked us to pay taxes, and we paid them. Now, suddenly, on the grounds of lack of obedience, we are being punished. What a reason it is to deprive me of such honors, we must have an explanation!"

The Dongting Merchant Gang is located in Wengxiang, Dongshan Town, Wu City. It is considered the largest business gang in Suzhou and is extremely powerful. Wu Zhongcheng is considered the chief merchant of the merchant gang. Of course, his energy as the chief merchant cannot be compared with that of Sun Kehong. Sun Kehong can mobilize Five-masted transoceanic ships were Type B merchant ships, while Wu Zhongcheng only had three-masted ships.

The Emperor of the Ming Dynasty was always scolded, and this was also the reason why he sold the five-masted ocean-going ships to the Mughals and the Taishi Red-haired Fans, but refused to sell them to the merchants of the Ming Dynasty. To a domestic slave? The wealthy merchants of the Ming Dynasty could only hold it indirectly by purchasing ship tickets.

"This is simply too much! Do you really think that as long as there is a knife on it, you can't take it from me? No bone-scraping knife can scrape like this!"

"Today we are all here to find a way. We have to find a way! If we continue to give in today, there will only be more bullying!"

"Mr. Zhang, please say something!"

Everyone looked at Zhang Gaorui. Zhang Gaorui was sitting in the middle, holding a tea cup, thinking quite seriously. He thought for a while and said: "How about forgetting it? The court only dismissed me and other honors and did not continue to pursue. That's almost it. It's already wrong. If we continue to make trouble, won't it give the court a reason to get angry?"

"That minion, Luo Bingliang, is holding back his anger. He is waiting for us to cause trouble, and then he will kick down the door and ransack the house."

To be honest, Zhang Gaorui was a little scared. He just wanted to make a fortune and pay taxes properly, which was nothing more than making trouble.

"Are you just going to endure it like this?" Pan Jingwen said with a look of disbelief.

"I have received the news that the gentleman in the court posted a ticket asking Your Majesty to raid his home. Your Majesty may just write a petition to revoke his honor and dismissal. If the trouble continues, His Majesty's tender heart will be wiped out by us. We are here. The six families, you and me, will all have to die. The men in our family will be sent to Luzon and Java, and the women will be sent to workshops to be bullied." Zhang Gaorui sighed and said helplessly: "The Yang family in Xindu, all of them have become The criminal has entered Beijing."

Zhang Gaorui did not choose to hide it. He did receive the news. This time it was His Majesty's benevolence. If he was shameless again, he would be dead if he really followed Zhang Juzheng's method.

"Jiang Ling Gong, are you crazy?!" Everyone in Wu Zhongcheng was dumbfounded. He had no one in the court and didn't know about such things. However, Zhang Gaorui got in touch with Lu Guangzu, the minister of Dali Temple, a few years ago, and came to Suzhou with the imperial edict. , and the news of Lu Guangzu’s warning.

Zhang Juzheng did not avoid people at all. He made it clear what he was talking about and it was an extremely severe warning.

Zhang Gaorui sighed and said: "Jiang Linggong has been crazy for a day or two. He has always been crazy."

If Zhang Juzheng is not crazy, what kind of new policy can he pursue? The death of the Ming Dynasty had nothing to do with Zhang Juzheng.

"This matter started from Mr. Zhang. Mr. Zhang had to come up with an idea." Pan Jingwen was obviously unwilling to let it go. He directly forced Zhang Gaorui to continue leading everyone to fight. He could not let the court take it.

Zhang Gaorui looked at everyone, sighed heavily and said: "Everyone, honestly speaking, the imperial court treated us well. It did take away our fields, but didn't it also give the ship a lead to let us go to sea? ? Even if you don’t want to take risks on the sea, you can still rent the boat to others and make a lot of money.”

"In the five years since the Suzhou Prefecture was in Longqing, its total population was 340,000, with a population of 1.23 million. Last year, it had a population of 410,000, with a population of more than 1.7 million. It had marbles, red copper, white copper, white iron, and brocade decorations. Boxes, woodware, etc., the number of merchants has increased from 12,000 to 25,000 last year. Everyone, let’s be content.”

"You can do whatever you want to do. I don't have that intention anymore. I want to do business safely. Why do I have to bring trouble to the court?"

"Let's go!" When Pan Jingwen heard what Zhang Gaorui said, his expression changed drastically, and he led the people out of Zhang's Mansion.

In just seven days, the business of Zhang Gaorui's family immediately began to deteriorate. The supply of coal, firewood, and iron materials from the iron workshop, paper and ink from the book workshop, fabric from the garment workshop, leather from the suitcase workshop, and wood from the wooden machine shop were all cut off. , all the companies that had worked well together stopped supplying, which suddenly hit Zhang Gaorui's family's business hard.

When Zhang Gaorui was in distress, Zhang Gaorui's son was playing in a boat in Taihu Lake when the boat capsized and sank into the lake, leaving no trace of his body.

This is not over yet. The things that Zhang's Trading Company wanted were either looted by bandits or temporarily increased in price, and his workshop was stagnant, resulting in failure to deliver as scheduled and heavy losses. In just half a month, Zhang Gaorui was like He looked more than ten years older and was seriously ill and bedridden.

Zhang Gaorui's illness came like a mountain, and within three to five days he had reached the stage of terminal illness. There were two children in front of his bed, one was twelve years old, the other was eight years old, and there was also a beautiful woman who he married as his first wife when he was very proud of himself. , from the Cheng family in Suzhou. This disaster brought great misfortune to the Cheng family.

"You guys took my letter and went to Songjiang Mansion overnight to defect to Sun Kehong. I have a sworn relationship with Mr. Sun Shang. When he was bullied by Xu Jie, I helped him. I hope he can protect the safety of the three of you and resign from office. Dao, they dare not take action on the official road."

"The ship deed is in this box. It will be given to Sun Kehong when the time comes. It will be used as a bargaining chip to ask him for protection."

"My son, tell your grandson, you must get the honors and kill these idiots! Kill them!" Zhang Gaorui's face turned red as if he was having a flashback, and he roared at the top of his lungs. Then he exhausted all his strength, stared at his eyes, and lost his breath. .

"Husband? Husband! Dad!" The woman and the two children burst into tears. There was no time to grieve, so the three of them secretly left the house and went straight to Songjiang Mansion overnight.

This time the Zhang family was unlucky because of a mole. Zhang Gaorui's younger brother Zhang Gaozhan was the mole, so that the woman and children did not even dare to collect the bones, so they could only let Zhang Gaorui's bones lie on the bed. As soon as the news of Zhang Gaorui's death spreads at dawn, it will be too late to leave.

The woman and child sat on the carriage, speeding all the way from Guandao Post Road to Songjiang Prefecture, intending to go straight to Songjiang Ocean Trading Company. Unexpectedly, as soon as they left Suzhou Prefecture, they encountered Sun Kehong's driver.

After Sun Kehong heard about the Zhang family, he immediately started to inquire about it. As soon as he heard the reason, he said something was wrong. He immediately made preparations and came directly. However, the accident happened to the Zhang family in Suzhou too fast, and he still Before he could help, Zhang Gaorui fell ill. When he arrived at the border of Suzhou, he saw his widow and child.

"You don't need to be polite, sister-in-law, just follow me back to Zhang's house." Sun Kehong was unable to lift the three people who were kneeling on the ground.

(End of this chapter)